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TAILLIGHTS
Know the facts about Taillights
Night time vehicle conspicuity to the rear is provided by rear position
lamps (also called tail lamps or tail lamps,
taillights or tail lights,
or in British English, rear sidelights). These are required to produce
only red light, and to be wired such that they are lit whenever the
front position lamps are illuminated—including when the headlamps are
on. Rear position lamps may be combined with the vehicle's brake lamps,
or separate from them. In combine lamps function are two types: the
lamps produce brighter red light for the brake lamp function, and dimmer
red light for the rear position lamp function. The tail and brake light
functions may be produced separately and/or by a dual-intensity lamp.
Rear fog lamps
In Europe and many other countries adhering to ECE Regulation 48,
vehicles must be equipped with one or two bright red "rear fog lamps",
which serve as high-intensity rear position lamps to be energized by the
driver in conditions of poor visibility to enhance vehicle conspicuity
from the rear. The allowable range of intensity for a rear fog lamp is
150 to 300 candelas, which is within the range of a U.S. brake lamp. For
this reason, many European vehicles imported to the United States have
their rear fog lamps wired as brake lamps, since their
European-specification brake lamps may not be sufficiently intense to
comply with U.S. regulations, and in North America rear fog lamps are
not required equipment. The final generation Oldsmobile Aurora also had
dual rear fog lights installed in the rear bumper as standard equipment.
Most jurisdictions permit rear fog lamps to be installed either singly
or in pairs. If a single rear fog is fitted, most jurisdictions require
it to be located at or to the driver's side of the vehicle's centerline
— whichever side is the prevailing driver's side in the country in which
the vehicle is registered. This is to maximize the sight line of
following drivers to the rear fog lamp. If two rear fog lamps are
fitted, they must be symmetrical with respect to the vehicle's
centerline. Proponents of the single rear fog lamp say dual rear fog
lamps closely mimic the appearance of illuminated brake lamps (which are
mandatorily installed in pairs), reducing the conspicuity of the brake
lamps' message when the rear fogs are activated. To provide some
safeguard against rear fog lamps' masking of brake lamps, ECE R48
requires a separation of at least 10 cm between the closest illuminated
edges of any brake lamp and any rear fog lamp.
Stop lamps (brake lamps)
Red steady-burning rear lights, brighter than the rear position lamps,
are activated when the driver applies the vehicle's brakes. These are
called brake lights or stop lamps. They are required to be fitted in
multiples of two, symmetrically at the left and right edges of the rear
of every vehicle. In North America, the acceptable range for a
single-bulb brake lamp is 80 to 300 candelas.
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